TITLE:
Incorporating Empathic Responses into Postpartum Depression Psychotherapy
AUTHORS:
Yumei Li
KEYWORDS:
Postpartum Depression, Vulnerability, Psychotherapy, Language Features, Emotional Domains, Empathic Responses
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Depression,
Vol.10 No.1,
February
10,
2021
ABSTRACT: This study aims to delve into linguistic evidence
for therapists to achieve better therapeutic outcomes by empowering women
suffering from postpartum depression with empathic responses. Conversation
samples are transcribed from videos for analysis. The focus of analysis is on
language features of two postpartum women based on the Postpartum Voice of
Depression Response Model. Expressions of negative feelings fall into four emotional
domains. Language features of negative feelings are salient in postpartum
women, often represented by a frequent use of negative words and sustaining on
a sad topic. In clinical settings, therapists can help postpartum women get out
of disturbing states by means of eliciting their inner feelings, identifying
negative expressions and offering empathic responses accordingly. An empathic
attitude matters in a person-centered clinical setting, which means a
reassuring expression from the therapist can ease anxiety of the pa-tient. The
application of the Model has implications for emotional support in clinical
settings, particularly in terms of differentiating between four emotional domains
and showing understandings of negative feelings experienced by postpartum
women.